Ten Bells

Time Out says

3 out of 5 stars

Details

Users say
(3)

1 out of 5 stars

Time Out says

3 out of 5 stars

Firmly on the Shoreditch circuit, this prominent, stripped-down corner pub is party central, a century or so after its clientele included Jack the Ripper’s last victim enjoying her final drink. Press cuttings and other Ripperana line the stairs to the toilets, but while the current owners have kept the pub’s original tiling (amazing it is, too), they’ve played the alternative card by chucking in busted sofas, ’60s cinema seats and a glitterball.

The market traders of Spitalfields opposite thus avoid it, despite a worthy selection of beers that includes Bombardier, Grolsch, Staropramen and John Smith’s on draught, and Sol, Früli, Budvar and Brooklyn by the bottle. Ask for a glass of wine and you’ll get something equally quaffable. Monday’s quiz nights are taken as seriously as the need to look interesting and imbibe.

It's sadly true that the pubs in London's hipster districts are baby unfriendly. Perhaps the kids working in them are too cool to admit that they were once newborns too. But that doesn't excuse it, and it certainly doesn't give them a reason to be jerks about it. 'I'm terribly sorry but...' might be a good way to start a sentence saying you are not going to allow a group of thirsty customers with plenty of cash to come into your pub because they have a baby in tow, even though there is plenty of space for them in the corner of the room. 'No kids in here!', uttered by a staff member who looked like he was barely old enough to drink himself, is not.
I'd already bought a couple of pints in here by the time my friends and their kid arrived (served with a sigh when I had the nerve to ask them to describe their ale selection). They'll be the last.
Oh, and the toilets are unpleasant and the real ale selection limited. Two from the Truman brewery down the road -- how original -- and Bombardier -- groan...

Appalling establishment.Staff extremely rude and aggressive. Apparently we were told by staff that we were rude cause we asked for an extra champagne glass on my friends birthday. Yet they told us this at the end of the night even though they had been happy to take our money through the night . When we asked for the owners contact details they refused to give it. Obviously this speaks volumes for a bunch of inept staff!!!AVOID AVOID AVOID